The Presidency also said Nigerians who make calls for foreign intervention in Nigeria’s affairs, are acting in bad faith.

This was contained in a statement signed by Senior Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu on Wednesday, July 21, following the end of the Sallah festivities.

The statement reads: “There’s nothing to gain by disparaging your country overseas. Every citizen must respect their nation. Those countries they go to and say bad things about Nigeria, their citizens dare not do that. When they go outside, they speak well of their nation. They are ambassadors of their own country. They are salesmen for their nations. Why do we go out and tell the worst stories of our own country? I think that Nigerians have to change. If we don’t love this country and if we don’t promote it, nobody will do it for us. This is very clear from the message Governor (Aminu) Masari (of Katsina State) issued a few days ago”

In a statement issued by Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu, the Presidency alleged that the recent calls for the sack or resignation of the minister are being sponsored by the opposition and some unnamed Information and Communication Technology (ICT) companies.

He said “Today, there is an unfortunate fashion in public discourse that makes leaders in politics, religion, and civil society liable in the present for every statement they have ever made in the past – no matter how long ago, and even after they have later rejected them. This insidious phenomenon seeks to cancel the careers of others on the basis of a thing they have said, regardless of when they said it. The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy is, currently, subject to a “cancel campaign” instigated by those who seek his removal. They do not really care what he may or may not have said some 20 years ago: that is merely the instrument they are using to attempt to “cancel” him. But they will profit should he be stopped from making decisions that improve the lives of everyday Nigerians. The Minister has, rightly, apologized for what he said in the early 2000s. The views were absolutely unacceptable then and would be equally unacceptable today, were he to repeat them. But he will not repeat them – for he has publicly and permanently condemned his earlier utterances as wrong. In the 2000s, the minister was a man in his twenties; next year he will be 50. Time has passed, and people and their opinions – often rightly – change. But all discerning Nigerians know this manufactured dispute is nothing to do with the minister’s prior words, but solely concern his actions in the present”

The statement was released by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu in reaction to the protest by opposition parties, the Labour movement and civil society groups to the increased fuel price and hike in electricity tariff by Power Distribution Companies (DisCos).

The statement read “The All Progressives Congress, APC came to power in 2015 defeating an incumbent administration amidst very high expectations from President Muhammadu Buhari. Five years on, the administration has worked hard to meet many expectations, but still, there are certain tough decisions which had to be taken to put back the country on the path of sustainable development. To stop the mismanagement of taxpayer money, eliminate corruption associated with subsidies on petroleum products, power, fertilizer among others, the administration took the decision to implement long-delayed reforms, withdraw and allow the market to determine their prices. Subsidy removal in these sectors had long been foreseen by successive administrations as game changers in search of solutions to move forward with the nation’s development. These are reforms that are necessary and overdue. Blueprint upon blueprint, timeline upon timeline had come and gone but the courage to take bold decisions was not there. Over the last few days, one claim acquiring a potent resonance with the online community, sections of the labour movement and the opposition are that the actions are ill-timed and ill-advised. There is nothing new in the fact that the country is today fighting multiple challenges along with COVID-19, including low earnings, near-collapse of the oil market, floods, threats of terrorism and banditry but the challenges notwithstanding, a good government must make decisions for the people’s good. As President, Muhammadu Buhari takes these difficult decisions, both popular and unpopular and as a leader because he is demonstrating the right courage to take such decisions as they become necessary in view of present circumstances. History will be kind to President Buhari because, in addition to his amazing ability to command votes, he will be remembered as the President who made real contributions to economic and overall national development by eliminating the evils of corruption embedded in subsidies. In any democracy, the most important certificate in governance is acceptance by the people and, with the support of ordinary Nigerians, President Buhari has shown a rare determination to carry out the bold initiatives as these ones driven by nothing other than the greatest good for the greatest number of people. In these challenging times, the President is pushing development goals, not politics and history will judge him in favourable terms rather than his critics in the new media and the opposition”

Shehu, who spoke at a media parley with House of Representatives correspondents, urged proponents of restructuring to take their agitation for restructuring to the national assembly as the Buhari-led administration is committed to the promise which is contained in APC manifesto.

He said: “We in the APC are committed to restructuring. Read the manifesto of the APC. It is stated there and so, we are not running away from it. President Buhari is ready to restructure the country. The problem we have with a lot of the proponents of restructuring is that they are looking for the fastest way to that restructuring. They don’t want to use the parliament. They want to use extra constitutional bodies and that is untidy. If you are a democrat, you abide by the processes. The parliament is the institution of government working with the executive and the judiciary. For you to say no you want to do a congress at Yaba Market Square and debate; do you want to cause a fight. We must be organised and follow due process. If you have a case on restructuring, come to the parliament. In any case, the Senate President has announced that this 9th Parliament will start constitutional amendment in January. So, bring your issue. These are intelligent people voted for by the people. Those who shout restructuring saying they want a parallel body to-do that, we have said to them that they are wrong. The sovereignty of the people resides with the parliament and so, if you want to restructure the country, come to the parliament. If you don’t have confidence in the parliamentarians you have voted for, wait for four years and vote them out and choose another set of people. But you cannot circumvent the role of the parliament in a democracy and it is key to whatever restructuring you want”.